Carbon 3D, creator of the CLIP 3D printing technology, is among the companies presenting in a special 3D-printing focused track at Molding 2018.

Additive manufacturing (AM) and traditional injection molding can already check a lot of the same boxes: net-shape parts, precision, repeatability, a wide range of materials. The pace of change within AM is such that the technology is continuously making big strides in areas like resolution, speed and materials offered. Beyond the similarities with molding, there are also key differences, including geometries that would be virtually impossible in molding and the time and cost associated with the fabrication of tooling.

With that in mind, Molding 2018 (Feb. 27-March 1; Long Beach, Calif.) is providing an entire track dedicated to the technology—3D Printing: Molder’s Friend or Foe—which will feature a cross section of industry players who are fully immersed in additive manufacturing. Speakers in the session range from molders and moldmakers to printing technology suppliers and AM houses with the scale to challenge traditional molding in certain lot ranges.

Learn from their successes (and mistakes) and see if (or when) you should add AM to your portfolio.